Valve covers are typically placed over the upper ends of upstanding pipes leading to buried valves to prevent dirt and other material from entering the pipes and covering up the valves or clogging their working parts.
U.S. Pat. No. 43,056 to Weldon issued on June 7, 1864 illustrates such a valve cover arrangement in which a cap h is screwed onto the upper end of the pipe A leading to the buried valve g. Lid i is pivotably mounted to the cap h and is movable to alternately provide and prevent access to the valve g. As illustrated by Weldon, a rod E can be either permanently positioned within the upstanding A or inserted into the upstanding pipe to reach and manipulate the buried valve. U.S. Pat. No. 420,044 to Dennis issued on Jan. 28, 1890 and U.S. Pat. No. 2,099,479 to Heinkel et al issued on Nov. 16, 1937 illustrate valve cover arrangements in which the valve cover is mounted to the upstanding pipe by a screw arrangement. The height of the valve cover relative to the upstanding pipe can be adjusted as desired by turning the valve cover clockwise or counterclockwise. The screw-thread patterns of these two patents are not continuous and have vertically extending channels to drain away water and mud. The lids of Dennis and Heinkel are held in place by manipulating a screw and they cannot be easily and quickly opened and closed.
U.S. Pat. No. 988,974 to Chapman issued on Apr. 11, 1911 illustrates a valve cover with a pivotably mounted lid D. Like Dennis and Weldon, the lid is also held in place by manipulating a screw and it appears that the lid can only be opened by placing a tool or other device in the screw hole once the screw E is removed and prying the lid open or by gripping the hinge knuckle D'. Chapman's lower portion C is slidably mounted about the upstanding pipe A and can be selectively held against movement relative to the pipe A by manipulating screws F as illustrated in FIG. 3.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,217,097 to Brooks issued on Oct. 8, 1940 illustrates a meter box cover with latches 26 that are pivotably mounted to the lid 9. As Brooks' lid 9 closes, the latches 26 ride over the surfaces 31 and 32 and eventually abut the surfaces 33 where they are held in place by the counterweights on the arms 34. To open Brooks' lid 9, a T-shaped implement 36 must be inserted into the slot 35 and then rotated at a right angle so that the head of the T is beneath each of the arms 34. The implement 36 is then raised to move the latches 26 away from engagement with the surfaces 33 and to open the lid 9. U.S. Pat. No. 3,858,755 to Tellen illustrates a meter box cover which has a latch that is pivotably mounted either about a horizontal axis or vertical axis and which is biased toward engagement with the flange 4 of the box 1 by a spring. Like Brooks, Tellen's lid 3 can only be opened by inserting a tool 20 through a hole in the lid to contact and pull the latch away from engagement with the flange 4. U.S. Pat. No. Re. 28,640 to Sauriol reissued on Dec. 9, 1975 illustrates a meter housing which has a removable cover 16 that is designed to be locked in place over the inlet to the housing 10. To remove the cover 16, a key must be inserted through the aperture 40 to disengage the locking mechanism.
All of these prior art valve cover arrangements have one or more serious drawbacks. Weldon's arrangement cannot be adjusted up or down by more than a few screw threads of cap h. Dennis, Heinkel, and Chapman are all rather complex in design and difficult to manufacture and assemble as well as having lids that cannot be easily and quickly opened and closed. The latching arrangments of Brooks, Tellen, and Sauriol are also very complex and, likewise, their lids cannot be easily and quickly opened and closed.
The ideal valve cover for a pipe leading to a valve would be simple in design, inexpensive to make, and would substantially prevent dirt and other material from passing when the lid of the valve cover is closed. It would also be easily assembled, easily opened and closed, and easily moved up or down relative to the pipe. The present invention offers such a valve cover.